Selling your home

Selling your home is going to be a bit tougher in this turn-around market. Last year, it was definitely a seller's market. This year, the market is stabilizing and favoring the buyers. There are a lot of homes on the market vying for the same pool of buyers. Some homes have been on the market for longer than 60 days! Since purchasing a home is often the biggest investment of a lifetime, here are some important tips sellers can keep in mind when putting your home up for sale in today's buyer's market:

* An inspection helps set a realistic selling price. The market analysis prepared by the real estate agent will help in determining a fair selling price for the home based on the prices that other homes have sold for in the area. However, such comparison doesn’t usually reflect the true physical condition of the home and its systems, which may not be readily apparent to the untrained eye. A home inspection for the seller can give an accurate, overall picture of a home’s condition.
* The listing price should reflect deficiencies. If a house has deficiencies, the price should reflect them for a faster sale. The combination of a professional inspection report and a listing price that reflects the true condition of the house can help minimize any re-negotiation of the sales price late in the deal and, possibly, even speed up the selling process. No one wants a house that sits on the market for months at an unrealistic selling price.
* Disclosure is key. It has become a legal necessity to disclose, up front, any problems that buyers will most likely find out on their own or through their own inspection. Failure to disclose these items/defects can mean problems for the seller later on. By having their own inspection done, sellers will be aware of any issues – which the buyer’s home inspector will likely find anyway or that will become apparent once the buyer moves in.
* Make repairs before you sell. Sellers can turn lemons into lemonade with their own home inspection. For instance, if the roof needs major repairs or if the bathroom has an ongoing leak, any potential buyer is likely to negotiate the cost of these repairs off the listing price up front. The seller may save half the profit by fixing the roof and any other items on their own, positioning re-caulked bathroom tiles and new roof shingles as new upgrades or improvements instead of as a needed repair.

By having your home inspected in advance, you can justify a higher listing price by documenting that the home is in good condition, or minimize re-negotiations by disclosing defects at the time of listing.